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Topic: 適indle Unlimited" Now up and Running

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DuskyRose avatar
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Subject: 適indle Unlimited" Now up and Running
Date Posted: 7/16/2014 11:17 AM ET
Member Since: 8/18/2005
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Article Here. Someone found a test page, so there's no real information other than what was on the test page, such as when they might implement it.

Amazon is testing an ebook and audiobook subscription service called “Kindle Unlimited” that would cost $9.99 a month. According to pages that were pulled down, it will offer access to over 600,000 titles.

And it doesn't look like the Agency Five are on board, but.... Here.

Amazon Is Now in Talks With Simon & Schuster

No one seems to know what kind of talks they are, and some think Amazon may be looking to buy them. Maybe they're just negotiating the lending program.



Last Edited on: 7/18/14 9:08 AM ET - Total times edited: 1
MartieKr avatar
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Date Posted: 7/18/2014 8:57 AM ET
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Apparently this is up and running now on Amazon.

A lot of the books are the ones you get with Prime from the Kindle Lending Library.



Last Edited on: 7/18/14 3:22 PM ET - Total times edited: 1
DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/18/2014 9:08 AM ET
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Here is the link. Here.

I haven't had much time to look at it closely.

 

booklover6 avatar
Date Posted: 7/19/2014 8:00 PM ET
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I signed up for the free trial but it is too expensive. If they could get at least 2 of the big publishers on board, it might be worth it. A discount for Prime members would have been nice. No way am I paying $10 a month for mostly indies. 

booklover6 avatar
Date Posted: 7/19/2014 8:07 PM ET
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Plus I am not sure how the audible thing works. I recently signed up to get 3 months for $1.99 a month. I then got a credit when signing up for Kindle Unlimited. And it says you get a three month "complimentary" membership, which to me should mean free. Will I get a credit for each of the three months? Obviously I will have to contact Amazon to find out, but it shouldn't be so confusing. No way am I paying $15 a month. I get audio books from the library.

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/20/2014 1:23 PM ET
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 Will I get a credit for each of the three months?

I read somewhere that if you are already an Audible member, you get a free credit for them each of the three months of free membership. 

DH has an audible account, but I don't, so I haven't been able to see how that works yet.

 

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/25/2014 11:24 AM ET
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Well, I've been on Kindle Unlimited since the 19th and have gone through three books in the program so far. I read the second George Takei book, which I'd wanted to read but not enough to buy at $6.99. Liked it, but not a re-read for me. Then another book listed at $3.99 which I made it through to chapter five before I gave up. It would have been one I'd though I'd like. So that would be one month's dues there.

I've just finished the first of a trilogy I loved at $3.99 and actually bought it. It's a keeper. Hoping the second in the series which is also in KU is as good. (Third not yet out.) 

I've got the second in the series to start, then five more books which range from $1.48 to $3.99, for a total of $20 ready to read. So I've got about 1 month dues read, and two more months I'll probably get to in the next three weeks or so. 

So even on my freebie month I'm getting enough to read, and see a lot more on my WL, as long as they stay in there long enough for me to get to them. Working for me so far. 

I do have access to ebooks at my library, but frankly they don't carry a lot of what I'm interested in. KU doesn't cover it all either, but there's more than my library has.

Also, Open Road publishing just opened up their library to KU if anyone wants to browse their offerings. Here.  They don't have the Brother Cadfael series included, but hoping they'll be there at some time. 

So far, so good. And I haven't even messed with the audio books yet.



Last Edited on: 7/25/14 11:24 AM ET - Total times edited: 1
Generic Profile avatar
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Date Posted: 7/28/2014 4:14 PM ET
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I am creating a Kindle Unlimited WL and might do it at some point.  Meanwhile I borrowed a few with free audiobook upgrade to listen to on my free trial.

I haven't ever used the whispersync option before because if I pay for one version, I don't pay for another.  But I did use it on one of my unlimited borrows.  It was never really accurate.  It always put me several pages behind where I really was when I switched from my either the Audible app on my phone to the Kindle Fire or vice versa. 

I have an email into the Philly Free Library about how long they will keep my Wish List active if I don't renew my card right away.  So far no answer so maybe I have to call them.  Meanwhile I created a Kindle Unlimited WL for reference when my card comes up for renewal.  My local library has made great leaps and bounds since they finally started acquiring ebooks.  I may not need the FLP one anymore.

suzola avatar
Subject: Us it worth $10?
Date Posted: 7/28/2014 8:18 PM ET
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I am trying to notice what books are available through KU. I'm really not sure it will be worth the money for me. I would appreciate hearing from others who have tried it.

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/29/2014 5:34 AM ET
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It will all depend on what you read, how much you read, and what publishers participate. What are you looking for in particular?

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Ronda (RONDA) - ,
Date Posted: 7/29/2014 9:40 PM ET
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1-16 of 658,658 results for Kindle Store : Kindle Unlimited

Well... I just went to amazon and took a look at the kindle unlimited ad and it had a browse all titles link... that took me to the list of 658,658 books participating.

I am not doing it just because I have way to much to read already......

But I think I actually do need to do it for the free audible credit....  It says you get 3 free audible credits, but you get 1 a month for the first 3 months and since the kindle unlimited free period is 1 month, you really only get the 1st audible credit for nothing... if you cancel at the end of the 1 month... no $ and no more audible credit... but if you do the 3 months of it... I don't think $10 is a terrible price for an audible credit for each of those 2 months.

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/30/2014 10:48 AM ET
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I'd play with the Audible stuff, but frankly my DH already has a sizeable Audible library in his name which I share. Since I can only have the app listed with one account at a time on my device I'd rather just stay with his account than start me a second one. I don't do audio books enough to mess with it.

But it's interesting to hear if it draws others in.

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Date Posted: 7/30/2014 3:42 PM ET
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I started the 30-day free trial. I have started a Kindle Unlimited WL of books that are available to read. A LOT of the books I already have on my Amazon WLs were there. I am enjoying it so far, especially for the erotica and new adult titles. Seriously considering joining at the end of the 30 days.

I have been thinking that it would be really nice if there was a section on PBS that was devoted to loaning ebooks. Not just a subject in the Discussions category, but a real site kinda like what they do with the CDs and DVDs. Just sayin . . .

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 7/30/2014 4:04 PM ET
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I have been thinking that it would be really nice if there was a section on PBS that was devoted to loaning ebooks. 

I really doubt they'd want to bother with it. Especially since there are already web sites to get people together to legally loan out their Kindle or B&N books. I use Lendleme quite a bit in the past and think it works well. The B&N sites are harder to work with, but I have a few friends linked to my account that sometimes have something to lend that I'm interested in.

And I don't think PBS wants to even get near any illegal lending, or having it look like it could be going on. I think too many people don't understand what is and isn't allowed and might try to initiate illegal trades. They could be spending a lot of time explaining things and deleting messages.

They don't have the same problem with physical books. Not with the First-Sale Doctrine in place. And they have set-ups in place to make enough money here to at least keep afloat and with no membership dues. With a lending site they'd probably have to find advertisers. 

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 8/14/2014 5:07 PM ET
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Anybody else make a decision yet?

I've got 91 books on my Kindle Unlimited WL, and my 30 free days are up on Aug 18th. Four more days. 

So far, I've 'had the use of' $45.71 cents worth of books. 

Which means I've read 2 books I liked so much I bought, 3 I liked just fine, 1 just wasn't my thing, but wasn't bad, 5 I didn't like and a 1 in a series I just returned unopened because I didn't like the first book, and 1 I'm starting tonight so don't know how that'll go.

So, not counting the unread one, six on the 'good' side, and six on the 'bad' and one unknown. Not too bad, I think, since I'm picking books I hope will be good and trying new authors. The clunkers I might have bought anyway, in the future. Now I don't have to.

So, at $9.99 a month I've used up about 4.5 months of books I wanted to read and actually had the chance to. And that's during my free month with still a lot of books on my WL.

So I'm keeping the service. At least until my WL dries up.

I'm also keeping a list in Calibre along with all my collected books of what I'm reading, and how much each one would have been if I'd bought it. So 1) I can see if I'm getting my money's worth, and 2) I don't pick the bad books again in the future, forgetting I've read them already.

And as I go through the free books from FreeReadFeed.com and find many of them in KU as well as being free, I now don't download all the ones I'm interested in if they're in KU as well. I just add them to my KU WL on Amazon. Except for the ones I know I want to read that might possibly disappear from the KU list before I get to them. I do want those while they're still free now. Just in case.

So I'm downloading a lot fewer freebies as well.



Last Edited on: 8/14/14 5:09 PM ET - Total times edited: 1
booklover6 avatar
Date Posted: 8/16/2014 6:03 PM ET
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I cancelled it.  I'll never read the books on my TBR if I have to constantly worry whether I'm getting my money's worth of KU books that aren't even on my TBR! I have a huge TBR pile!

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Date Posted: 8/18/2014 11:02 AM ET
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I actually decided to keep it for a month or two.  In spending more time looking up various authors, I built up quite a bit of Kindle Unlimited wl. Also all my books are in storage due to a remodel.  I found more than a few of my print TBR books available under the KU program and I might even read some of those and then just purge them when I pack up my books.

I am thinking about not renewing my Philly free library subscription.  I originally got it because my library had a very pitiful ebook collection but in the last couple of years they have added literally thousands of ebooks.  Whoever makes the decisions on what to purchase much have very similar reading tastes to me.  Many of my FLP wish list books are in the KU program which is another deciding factor.

 

 

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Date Posted: 8/20/2014 11:28 AM ET
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Just came across some beading patterns under the Kindle unlimited. I searched for an author and it popped up with an another "author" with a similar name and it was a beading pattern of a painting. There's a whole bunch. Wouldn't be worth the subscription just for that unless you can crank out elaborate bead patters very quickly. Now I'm wondering what other crafty type things are on there.
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Date Posted: 9/7/2014 10:08 PM ET
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I have another week on my Kindle Unlimited. I've downloaded a few, and think I'm going to keep it for a little while but I'm confused on something very basic. Since you can only have 10 max at a time, how do you return a Kindle Unlimited book when done? Will this be self-explanatory when I'm done? I didn't see any info on that when I joined. 

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Date Posted: 9/8/2014 2:24 AM ET
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i don't have Kindle Unlimited, but it seems likely it works the same way you return a Kindle book borrowed from someone else or the library.  you don't do it from your Kindle, but from the 'Manage Content & Devices' page on amazon (under Your Account).  when you see that book in your list, there should be something like return or delete from account that takes it off and returns it.  [they used to have return, now i think it's just delete.]

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 9/8/2014 6:08 AM ET
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Just go to your main account on line and go to where you manage your books. You can then sort them into just your KU loans, from there you just select the book and return it. Or on your kindle select a new KU book and if you already have 10 checked out it will tell you that you already have your limit checked out and prompt you to return one. I think it first brings up your oldest loan and asks if you want to return that one. I just do it from the web site.



Last Edited on: 9/8/14 10:56 AM ET - Total times edited: 1
Generic Profile avatar
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Date Posted: 9/10/2014 11:11 AM ET
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I actually decided to keep it after looking up more authors and finding a lot I would like to read that my library doesn't have.  I just go to check out a new book and it will let me pick which one to return. I also do it from my computer and not my device.

MartieKr avatar
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Date Posted: 9/15/2014 8:08 AM ET
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I recently joined on the 8th and have downloaded 11 books so far.  Read 7 of those for a total of $29.00. So, I've already gotten the cost of membership in a week. I only have 30 books on my WL and will probably have most of them read before the free membership expires. I won't be keeping it after that as right now there's not much else I'm interested in. Of the 7 books I read, one is a dud and the rest were pretty good. Since I get a lot of newer release ebooks from my library, I'd probably be wasting my money on continuing. Still, I can see it being a nice deal for a few months if you don't have good access to ebooks.

DuskyRose avatar
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Date Posted: 9/15/2014 9:51 AM ET
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Keep checking in. I've seen a lot more titles hit the lists in the past couple of weeks. I saw somewhere were the total available went up 100,000. 

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Date Posted: 9/16/2014 2:02 PM ET
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One thing about this is unlike an out of state library card, you can cancel and restart it pretty easy and not lose your WL on Amazon.  I set up a separate KU list and made notes as to # in the series, and made all the books my library doesn't have High priority.  I'm going to keep it while my books are in storage and then cancel it for a few months while I catch up on my print TBR.  That is if this remodel from hell ever ends.

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